1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a washing device for an apparatus comprising a tank having a wall defining an interior chamber for holding a liquid and partitions dividing the interior chamber, the partitions having parts which are not immersed in the liquid and are susceptible to becoming fouled, the washing device comprising tubes passing through the wall of the tank and each of the tubes having an end extending into the interior chamber, tubing in communication with the tubes for feeding a washing liquid thereto, and a nozzle affixed to each tube end and arranged to project the washing liquid onto respective ones of the partition parts susceptible to becoming fouled.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Apparatus of this type is used particularly for the continuous crystallization of sugar, and to avoid fouling of the non-immersed parts of the partitions in the crystallization tank, it has been necessary to scour the non-immersed partition parts periodically with a washing liquid, which may be water or an undersaturated solution of the product to be crystallized. More particularly, to clean the vertical partitions dividing the interior chamber of the tank into a series of compartments or cells, nozzles projecting flat jets of washing liquid have been so disposed above the partitions that the median plane of the jets coincides with the plane of the partitions and the nozzles cyclically project atomized washing liquid against the partitions at a very low flow rate. The nozzles are affixed to the interior ends of tubes which pass through the tank wall and are connected to tubing which feeds the washing liquid to the nozzles. It is necessary for the nozzles to be properly oriented relative to the partitions for the cleaning operation to function properly. Therefore, a dry test is necessary before each nozzle is fixed in place because the edge of the partitions is not perfectly rectilinear. During operation, some of the partitions are deformed under the thermal and/or mechanical stresses occurring in the crystallization process and, in this case, the jets of washing liquid are not directed properly against the fouled partition parts and the nozzles fail to wash them effectively.
While nozzles which can be oriented are known, they cannot be oriented from the outside after they have been placed in the closed tank.